The President of the Republic has given his state of the Nation Address. The Executive has spoken. Now is the time of the legislature to speak in the performance of their oversight function. Section 112 of the Constitution states:

"The responsibilities of the members of the National Assembly shall include the following--

(a) all members shall maintain the dignity of the National Assembly both during the sittings of the National Assembly and in their acts and activities outside the National Assembly;

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(b) all members shall regard themselves as servants of the people of The Gambia, desist from any conduct by which they seek improperly to enrich themselves or alienate themselves from the people, and shall discharge their duties and functions in the interest of the nation as a whole and in doing so shall be influenced by the dictates of conscience and the national interest."

The Constitution is clear. National Assembly members are not servants of their political parties. They are servants of their people. Section 77 of the Constitution makes it mandatory for the President to be accountable to the servants of the people. It reads:

"The President shall at least once in each year attend a sitting of the National Assembly and address a session on the condition of The Gambia, the policies of the Government and the administration of the State."

It is now the duty of the servants of the people to scrutinize what the President has said and debate on issues that are of relevance to the Gambian people. A National Assembly that refuses to scrutinize the address of the President could not be qualified to be an oversight institution. Such a National Assembly would not be fit to exist. The public is therefore waiting to hear what the National Assembly has to say regarding the State of the Nation Address by the President.